The modernism model challenged pre-existing socio-cultural norms and was exemplified by the discussion of social relationships in early twentieth century literature. The concept of modernism developed from refutation of creationism and reinforced self identity and self consciousness as a form of expression. Moreover, the modernism paradigm is inherently intertwined with culture and Eysteinsson and Liska argue that in terms of literary criticism, "modernism constitutes one of the most prominent fields of literary studies today" (Eysteinsson and Liska, 2007:1). Indeed, leading anthologist Rainey asserts that in literary terms "modernists were giants, monsters of nature who loomed so large that contemporaries could only gape at them in awe" (Rainey 2007, p.xix)
[...] All My Sons depicts the socio-cultural backdrop of the United States in the aftermath of the Second World War, which is imperative to understanding the relationship between central protagonists Joe and Chris Keller. Through this father and son relationship, the play underlines the ethical and moral issues through the conflict between realist Joe and idealist Chris. From a contextual perspective, Miller portrays both characters as victims of war through the themes of father son conflict, parental guilt, socio-cultural change, morality and ethics and the American dream through a contemporary revision of the Greek tragedy format (Otten p.12). [...]
[...] In particular, the generation gap between Chris and Joe demonstrates the intimate concept of self identity and far reaching changes in traditional social constructs regulating familial relationships. For example, Mitchelich posits that the combination of industrialization, urbanization and an increasingly diverse workforce culminated in a larger division of home and work life, which in turn contributed to the continuing downfall of the authoritarian father at home (Mitchelich 1969). Additionally, as regards the United States in particular, Gorer suggests that the socio-cultural development of America post Second World War propagated the decline of the role of the father, particularly as a country of immigrants: making of an American demanded that the father should be rejected both as a model and as a source of authority. [...]
[...] Prior to the war, Chris presumably followed Joe's instructions however Miller's uses the aftermath of the war to exemplify the generation gap as Chris becomes aware of his identity and self. This in turn fuels Chris' idealism due to his experience of military co- operation, which sets up the narrative of the play for continuous conflict. A prime example of the clash between realism and idealism is the argument between Joe and Chris: was dying every day and you were killing boys and you did it for me? [...]
[...] Accordingly, the above analysis demonstrates that All My Sons, Miller utilizes the interrelationship between the generation gap and father/son conflict to integrate the central themes in the play. This is further supported by Oikawa's observation that conflict between Joe and Chris is based on the basic pattern of the rebellion of a son against his father, who has become aware of his own (2002, p.110). As such, Chris' rebellion is rooted in the generation gap between the concepts of family and self, which reiterates the argument that the generation gap becomes the source of tragedy in the play. [...]
[...] Benjamins Publishing Company. Gorer, G. (1958). The Americans: A Study in National Characters. Gresset Press Griffin, A. (1996). Understanding Arthur Miller. The University of South Carolina Press. Gross, B. (1975). All My Sons and the Larger Context. Modern Drama, Volume XVIII, No.1 March Levy, E. (2003). All about Oscar: the history and politics of the Academy Awards. Continuum International Publishing Mitchelich, A. (1969). Society Without a Father: A Contribution to Social Psychology, translated by Eric Mosbacher. New York: Harcourt, [...]
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